“土豪，我们做朋友吧！”

One of the hottest buzzwords in China right now is no doubt tuhao, a sarcastic, light-hearted term referring to rich people of little education, bad taste or lacking self-awareness.

眼下，中国最热门词汇非“土豪”莫属。这是一个带有讽刺和戏谑意味的词，指的是那些受教育不多、品味差且不自觉的富人们。

This is yet another example of smart Chinese Internet users applying their creativity to an aged phrase and giving it new life and meaning. The term, which literally means “country bully”, has been around since ancient times, when it was used to refer to rich and powerful rural landlords who defied laws and maltreated their tenants and peasants. In the age of class struggle, tuhao were among the worst enemies of the working class.

这回，中国网友再次发挥了聪明才智、别出心裁地为这个老词注入新的生命和含义。“土豪”一词由来已久，其字面意思指的是乡匪恶霸，曾统指那些有钱有势、目无王法、剥削佃户和农民的地主们。在阶级斗争时代，土豪是工人阶级最大的敌人之一。

However, the meaning of the word changed significantly when it was adapted a few years ago by Chinese players of the wildly popular computer game World of Warcraft to refer to rich players who spend big money to buy powerful virtual weapons. Because they don’t improve their skills by playing, these players are considered silly, uncultured, and unprofessional.

而当几年前，该词到了中国“魔兽迷”们口中，意思就彻底变了，它被用来指代那些为虚拟武器装备一掷千金的有钱玩家。因为这些人不愿靠打装备来提升技能，所以他们也成为了愚蠢、没文化以及外行的代名词。

But that is not the end of tuhao’s new life story. The renewed popularity of the term also coincides with the emergence of the Chinese “nouveau riche” — a generation of businessmen and women, property owners and entrepreneurs who have rapidly amassed large amounts of wealth in recent years.

而到此，全新的“土豪”进化史并未划上句点。这一“咸鱼翻身”的词汇与汉语里的“暴发户”一词不谋而合，后者指的是近来年那些“一夜暴富”的商人、富婆、业主以及企业家们。

Bad taste

品味低俗

Similar to the many rags-to-riches stories in human history, many Chinese billionaires who are on the global rich list do not come from well-educated or prestigious backgrounds. Rather, they achieved financial success through powerful connections, smart investments, and by riding out China’s economic miracle. Many of them don’t shy away from throwing their money around.

同人类史上众多白手起家的故事一样，很多登上全球富豪榜的中国富豪受教育程度不高，也没有显赫的身世。尽管如此，但他们通过强大的人脉，精明的投资并借助中国式经济奇迹的东风，最终获得成功。他们中的很多人可谓挥金如土。

As we read stories in the international and Chinese media of rich Chinese investors snatching up red-hot property in Manhattan, London, and Paris, or raising eyebrows at international auction houses andyacht shows, we are often reminded of their lack of manners, taste and cultural sensitivity.

当我们在国内外媒体上看到中国富豪投资者将曼哈顿、伦敦和巴黎炙手可热的房产抢购一空，或是在国际拍卖行和游艇展上的惊人表现时，我们经常会意识到他们是“教养、品味、文化”的三无人群。

As a result, a term that was popularized in the gaming world has now also been introduced into daily conversation. Now, the term is widely considered to mean “vulgar, tasteless, rich people”.

因此，一个网游流行词汇就这样被引入了日常语言之中。现在，该词泛指那些“举止粗俗，毫无品位可言的富人们”。

Trendy, young Internet users, who see themselves as the opposite of tuhao — not wealthy, but well-educated and cultured — have further popularized the term by using it in various comic situations, atprominent news events, or coining new catch phrases with it.

时尚的年轻网友们把自己看做是“土豪”的反义词——没钱，却有文化有教养。他们将这些运用到各种漫画场景以及新闻头条中，并创造出一系列热门口头禅，这下，“土豪”大火特火。

For example, the phrase “let’s be friends, tuhao,” went viral after it appeared in an online joke about a conversation between a rich young man and a wise monk.

例如，“土豪，我们做朋友吧!”这句话最初出现在一个年轻富豪对话聪明和尚的网络段子里，随即引发网友疯传。

When Apple released its much anticipated iPhone 5S in September, Chinese Internet users accurately predicted the immense popularity of the new golden-colored models among Chinese consumers, and named it “tuhao Gold”, to mock the taste of rich Chinese people.

当苹果公司九月发布万众期待的iPhone5S时，中国网友们准确地预测出金色款iPhone5S将受到中国消费者的热捧，为了嘲弄中国富豪们的品味，将其命名为“土豪金”。